Form 10KSB for PARAFIN CORP
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29-Dec-2005
Annual Report
ITEM 6. PLAN OF OPERATION.
The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the financial statements of the Registrant and notes thereto contained elsewhere in this report.
Twelve-Month Plan of Operation.
(a) 1 900 Numbers.
Until such time as the major Telephone Companies return to the 1 900 service, the Registrant is discontinuing the expansion into "not-for-profit" fund raising using "1-900" "pay-per-call" telephone numbers until the Telephone Companies reinstate its 1 900 services. This involves its proprietary 1 900 telephone numbers: 1 900 "DEMOCRAT", 1 900 "REPUBLICAN", 1 900 "STOP ABUSE", 1 900 "HIV AIDS", 1 900 HIV KIDS, 1 900 "GET MADD" and others.
The Registrant will continue to rely on JRM Financial Services Corporation to finance the Registrant's ongoing overhead under the terms of the bearer debenture it holds until fund raising contracts have been signed (see notes to the audited financial statements contained elsewhere in this report. The Registrant has availability to sufficient cash funds to maintain operations for the next twelve months.
(b) Oil and Gas Exploration.
The Registrant has continued to wait for the approval of the Government of Paraguay for the Hydrocarbon Concession granted to Guarani. The Registrand will continue to examine proposals in the hydrocarbon industry as well as other business opportunities.
Capital Expenditures.
There were no material capital expenditures during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2005.
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Risk Factors Connected with Plan of Operation.
(a) Limited Prior Operations, History of Operating Losses, and Accumulated Deficit May Affect Ability of Registrant to Survive.
The Registrant has had limited prior operations to date. Since the Registrant's principal activities to date have been limited to organizational activities, research and development, and prospect development, it has no record of any revenue-producing operations. Consequently, there is only a limited operating history upon which to base an assumption that the Registrant will be able to achieve its business plans. In addition, the Registrant has only limited assets (which consist of the rights to use certain 1-900 telephone numbers). As a result, there can be no assurance that the Registrant will generate significant revenues in the future; and there can be no assurance that the Registrant will operate at a profitable level. If the Registrant is unable to obtain customers and generate sufficient revenues so that it can profitably operate, the Registrant's business will not succeed. Accordingly, the Registrant's prospects must be considered in light of the risks, expenses and difficulties frequently encountered in connection with the establishment of a new business.
The Registrant has incurred losses from operations: $729,896 for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2004, and $30,782,404 for the period from inception (October 3, 1978) to September 30, 2004. At September 30, 2005, the Registrant had losses of $1,021,667 an accumulated deficit of $31,804,071. This raises substantial doubt about the Registrant's ability to continue as a going concern.
As a result of the fixed nature of many of the Registrant's expenses, the Registrant may be unable to adjust spending in a timely manner to compensate for any unexpected delays in the development and marketing of the Registrant=s products or any capital raising or revenue shortfall. Any such delays or shortfalls will have an immediate adverse impact on the Registrant's operations and financial condition.
(b) Need for Additional Financing May Affect Operations and Plan of Business.
The working capital requirements associated with the plan of business of the Registrant will continue to be significant (see Statements of Operations in the financial statements contained elsewhere in this Form 10-KSB). However, the Registrant anticipates, based on currently proposed assumptions relating to its operations (including with respect to costs and expenditures and projected cash flow from operations), that it can generate sufficient financing through a floating debenture with JRM Financial Services, Inc. (formerly held by Xanthos Management Corporation) to continue its operations for at least the next 12 months at the current level without requiring additional financing (through the use of the unused line of credit to draw on under this debenture). The Registrant does not anticipate, at the present time, needing to raise any additional capital in the next twelve months to implement its sales and marketing strategy and grow. In the event that the Registrant's plans change or its assumptions change (due to unanticipated expenses, technical difficulties, or otherwise), the Registrant would be required to seek additional financing sooner than currently anticipated or may be required to significantly curtail or cease its operations.
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If funding is insufficient at any time in the future, the Registrant may not be able to take advantage of business opportunities or respond to competitive pressures, or may be required to reduce the scope of its planned product development and marketing efforts, any of which could have a negative impact on its business and operating results. In addition, insufficient funding may have a material adverse effect on the company's financial condition, which could require the company to:
• curtail operations significantly; ;
• sell significant assets;
• seek arrangements with strategic partners or other parties that may require the company to relinquish significant rights to products, technologies or markets;or
• explore other strategic alternatives including a merger or sale of the company.
To the extent that the Registrant raises additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, the issuance of such securities may result in dilution to existing stockholders. If additional funds are raised through the issuance of debt securities, these securities may have rights, preferences and privileges senior to holders of common stock and the terms of such debt could impose restrictions on the Registrant's operations. Regardless of whether the Registrant's access to financing proves to be inadequate to meet the company's operational needs, the Registrant may seek to compensate providers of services by issuance of stock in lieu of cash, which may also result in dilution to existing shareholders.
(c) Independent Auditors Have Expressed Substantial Doubt Ability to Continue as a Going Concern.
In his report dated November 28, 2005, the Registrant's independent auditor stated that the financial statements for the year ended September 30, 2005 were prepared assuming that the company would continue as a going concern. The company's ability to continue as a going concern is an issue raised as a result of cash flow constraint, an accumulated deficit, and recurring losses from operations. The Registrant continues to experience net losses. The company's ability to continue as a going concern is subject to the ability to generate a profit and/or obtain necessary funding from outside sources, including obtaining additional funding from the sale of the company's securities, increasing sales or obtaining loans from various financial institutions where possible. The continued net losses and stockholders' deficit increases the difficulty in meeting such goals and there can be no assurances that such methods will prove successful.
(d) Loss of 1 900 Telephone Provider May Affect Plan of Business.
The 1 900 service provider for the Registrant, Network Telephone Services, Inc., has informed the company that AT&T has informed them that AT&T will no longer provide 1 900 telephone service after February 28, 2004. While the Registrant has only one number services by AT&T, 1 900 REPUBLICAN, management will make a determination as to a subsequent telephone provider when it obtains more information from Network Telephone Services, Inc.
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If the Registrant is unable to obtain a substitute telephone provider for this 1 900 number, then it could not be used, which could in turn affect future business prospects for the company.
(e) Competition May Affect Operating Result in the Future.
The Registrant's activities in the fund raising industry, and the prospective activities in oil and gas exploration, involve a competitive industries. Many of the Registrant's competitors have longer operating histories, significantly greater financial, technical, marketing and other resources, and greater brand recognition than the company does. The Registrant also expects to face additional competition as other established and emerging companies enter the fund raising business.
(f) Control by Officers and Directors Over Affairs of the Registrant May Override Wishes of Other Stockholders.
The Registrant officers and directors currently own common stock equal to approximately 1.5% of the outstanding shares of the Registrant's common stock. Investors will only have rights associated with stockholders to make decisions that affect the Registrant.
The success of the Registrant, to a large extent, will depend on the quality of the directors and officers of the company. Accordingly, no person should invest in the Registrant unless he is willing to entrust all aspects of the management of the company to the officers and directors.
(g) Loss of Any of Current Management Could Have Adverse Impact on Business and Prospects for Registrant.
The Registrant's success may be dependent upon the hiring of qualified administrative personnel. None of the Registrant's officers and directors has an employment agreement with the Registrant; therefore, there can be no assurance that these personnel will remain employed by the Registrant after the termination of such agreements. Should any of these individuals cease to be affiliated with the Registrant for any reason before qualified replacements could be found, there could be material adverse effects on the Registrant's business and prospects in that replacement personnel may not understand the proposed business of the company. Also, the Registrant does not carry any key person insurance on any of the officers and directors of the company.
In addition, all decisions with respect to the management of the Registrant will be made exclusively by the officers and directors of the Registrant. Shareholders of the Registrant will only have rights associated with such ownership to make decision that affect the Registrant. The success of the Registrant, to a large extent, will depend on the quality of the directors and officers of the Registrant. Accordingly, no person should invest in the shares unless he is willing to entrust all aspects of the management of the Registrant to the officers and directors.
(h) Limitations on Liability, and Indemnification, of Directors and Officers May Result in Expenditures by Registrant.
The Registrant's Articles of Incorporation include provisions to eliminate, to the fullest
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extent permitted by the Nevada Revised Statutes as in effect from time to time, the personal
liability of directors of the Registrant for monetary damages arising from a breach of their fiduciary duties as directors. The Bylaws of the Registrant include provisions to the effect that the Registrant may, to the maximum extent permitted from time to time under applicable law, indemnify any director, officer, or employee to the extent that such indemnification and advancement of expense is permitted under such law, as it may from time to time be in effect. Any limitation on the liability of any director, or indemnification of directors, officer, or employees, could result in substantial expenditures being made by the Registrant in covering any liability of such persons or in indemnifying them.
(i) Potential Conflicts of Interest May Affect Ability of Officers and Directors to Make Decisions in the Best Interests of Registrant.
The officers and directors have other interests to which they devote time, either individually or through partnerships and corporations in which they have an interest, hold an office, or serve on boards of directors, and each will continue to do so notwithstanding the fact that management time may be necessary to the business of the Registrant. As a result, certain conflicts of interest may exist between the Registrant and its officers and/or directors, which may not be susceptible to resolution. All of the potential conflicts of interest will be resolved only through exercise by the directors of such judgment as is consistent with their fiduciary duties to the Registrant. It is the intention of management, so as to minimize any potential conflicts of interest, to present first to the board of directors to the Registrant, any proposed investments for its evaluation.
A potential conflict of interest that arose was the negotiation of the debenture between the Registrant and JRM Financial Services, Inc. (see discussion under Item 12, below). Mr. Fowlds attempted to mitigate the potential conflict by abstaining from the board of director's vote on this financing package. The Registrant is not aware of any other potential conflicts of interest that have arisen.
Sidney Fowlds, president, devotes approximately 40 hours per week to the activities of the Registrant. Other officers and directors are on an as needed basis. As indicated in the biographical backgrounds of the other company directors, they are all retired from their former careers.
(j) Other External Factors May Affect Viability of Registrant.
The industry of the Registrant in general is a speculative venture necessarily involving some substantial risk. There is no certainty that the expenditures to be made by the Registrant will result in a commercially profitable business. The marketability of its products will be affected by numerous factors beyond the control of the Registrant. These factors include market fluctuations, and the general state of the economy (including the rate of inflation, and local economic conditions), which can affect companies' spending. Factors that leave less money in the hands of potential customers of the Registrant will likely have an adverse effect on the Registrant. The exact effect of these factors cannot be accurately predicted, but the combination of these factors may result in the Registrant not receiving an adequate return on invested capital.
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(k) Non-Cumulative Voting May Affect Ability of Shareholders to Influence Registrant Decisions.
Holders of the shares are not entitled to accumulate their votes for the election of directors or otherwise. Accordingly, the holders of a majority of the shares present at a meeting of shareholders will be able to elect all of the directors of the Registrant, and the minority shareholders will not be able to elect a representative to the Registrant's board of directors.
(l) Absence of Cash Dividends May Affect Investment Value of Registrant's Stock.
The board of directors does not anticipate paying cash dividends on the shares for the foreseeable future and intends to retain any future earnings to finance the growth of the Registrant's business. Payment of dividends, if any, will depend, among other factors, on earnings, capital requirements, and the general operating and financial condition of the Registrant, and will be subject to legal limitations on the payment of dividends out of paid-in capital.
(m) Any Shares Issued to JRM Financial Services, Inc. in Payment of Debenture May Result in Dilution to Other Shareholders, and Control by JRM.
Under the debenture agreement between the Registrant and JRM, JRM and the Corporation, by joint agreement, cancelled any stock conversion privileges attached to the Debenture.
(n) No Assurance of Public Trading Market and Risk of Low Priced Securities May Affect Market Value of Company's Stock.
The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has adopted a number of rules to regulate "penny stocks." Such rules include Rule 3a51-1 and Rules 15g-1 through 15g-9 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Because the securities of the Company may constitute "penny stocks" within the meaning of the rules (as any equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share or with an exercise price of less than $5.00 per share, largely traded in the Over the Counter Bulletin Board or the Pink Sheets), the rules would apply to the Company and to its securities.
The SEC has adopted Rule 15g-9 which established sales practice requirements for certain low price securities. Unless the transaction is exempt, it shall be unlawful for a broker or dealer to sell a penny stock to, or to effect the purchase of a penny stock by, any person unless prior to the transaction: (i) the broker or dealer has approved the person's account for transactions in penny stock pursuant to this rule and (ii) the broker or dealer has received from the person a written agreement to the transaction setting forth the identity and quantity of the penny stock to be purchased. In order to approve a person's account for transactions in penny stock, the broker or dealer must: (a) obtain from the person information concerning the person's financial situation, investment experience, and investment objectives; (b) reasonably determine that transactions in penny stock are suitable for that person, and that the person has sufficient knowledge and experience in financial matters that the person reasonably may be expected to be
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capable of evaluating the risks of transactions in penny stock; (c) deliver to the person a written statement setting forth the basis on which the broker or dealer made the determination (i) stating in a highlighted format that it is unlawful for the broker or dealer to affect a transaction in penny stock unless the broker or dealer has received, prior to the transaction, a written agreement to the
transaction from the person; and (ii) stating in a highlighted format immediately preceding the customer signature line that (iii) the broker or dealer is required to provide the person with the written statement; and (iv) the person should not sign and return the written statement to the broker or dealer if it does not accurately reflect the person's financial situation, investment experience, and investment objectives; and (d) receive from the person a manually signed and dated copy of the written statement. It is also required that disclosure be made as to the risks of investing in penny stock and the commissions payable to the broker-dealer, as well as current price quotations and the remedies and rights available in cases of fraud in penny stock transactions. Statements, on a monthly basis, must be sent to the investor listing recent prices for the Penny Stock and information on the limited market.
There has been only a limited public market for the common stock of the Registrant. The common stock of the Registrant is currently traded on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board. As a result, an investor may find it difficult to dispose of, or to obtain accurate quotations as to the market value of the company's securities. The regulations governing penny stocks, as set forth above, sometimes limit the ability of broker-dealers to sell the Registrant's common stock and thus, ultimately, the ability of the investors to sell their securities in the secondary market.
Potential shareholders of the Company should also be aware that, according to SEC Release No. 34-29093, the market for penny stocks has suffered in recent years from patterns of fraud and abuse. Such patterns include (i) control of the market for the security by one or a few broker-dealers that are often related to the promoter or issuer; (ii) manipulation of prices through prearranged matching of purchases and sales and false and misleading press releases; (iii) "boiler room" practices involving high-pressure sales tactics and unrealistic price projections by inexperienced sales persons; (iv) excessive and undisclosed bid-ask differential and markups by selling broker-dealers; and (v) the wholesale dumping of the same securities by promoters and broker dealers after prices have been manipulated to a desired level, along with the resulting inevitable collapse of those prices and with consequent investor losses. The Company's management is aware of the abuses that have occurred historically in the penny stock market. Although the Company does not expect to be in a position to dictate the behavior of the market or of broker dealers who participate in the market, management will strive within the confines of practical limitations to prevent the described patterns from being established with respect to the Company's securities.
(o) Failure to Remain Current in Reporting Requirements Could Result in Delisting from the OTC Bulletin Board.
Companies trading on the OTC Bulletin Board, such as the Registrant, must be reporting issuers under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and must be current in their reports under Section 13, in order to maintain price quotation privileges on the OTC Bulletin Board. If the Registrant fails to remain current in its reporting requirements, the company could be removed from the OTC Bulletin Board. As a result, the market liquidity for
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the Registrant's securities could be severely adversely affected by limiting the ability of broker-dealers to sell its securities and the ability of stockholders to sell their securities in the secondary market.
(p) Effects of Failure to Maintain Market Makers.
If the Registrant is unable to maintain a National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. member broker/dealers as market makers, the liquidity of the common stock could be impaired, not only in the number of shares of common stock which could be bought and sold, but also through possible delays in the timing of transactions, and lower prices for the common stock than might otherwise prevail. Furthermore, the lack of market makers could result in persons being unable to buy or sell shares of the common stock on any secondary market. There can be no assurance the Registrant will be able to maintain such market makers.
Critical Accounting Policies.
The SEC has issued Financial Reporting release No. 60, "Cautionary Advice Regarding Disclosure About Critical Accounting Policies" ("FRR 60"), suggesting companies provide additional disclosure and commentary on their most critical accounting policies. In FRR 60, the SEC defined the most critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of a company's financial condition and operating results, and require management to make its most difficult and subjective judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates of matters that are inherently uncertain. Based on this definition, the Registrant's most critical accounting policies include: (a) use of estimates in the preparation of financial statements; and (b) impairment of long-lived assets. The methods, estimates and judgments the Registrant uses in applying these most critical accounting policies have a significant impact on the results the Registrant reports in its financial statements.
(a) Use of Estimates in the Preparation of Financial Statements.
The preparation of the financial statements contained in this report requires the company to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. On an on-going basis, the Registrant evaluates these estimates, including those related to revenue recognition and concentration of credit risk. The Registrant bases its estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that is believes to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
(b) Impairment of Long-Lived Assets
Long-lived assets and certain identifiable intangible assets to be held and used are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable. Measurement of an impairment loss for long-lived assets and certain identifiable intangible assets that management expects to hold and use is
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based on the fair value of the asset. Long-lived assets and certain identifiable intangible assets to be disposed of are reported at the lower of carrying amount of fair value less costs to sell.
Forward Looking Statements.
The foregoing plan of operation contains "forward looking statements" within the meaning of Rule 175 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Rule 3b-6 of the Securities Act of 1934, as amended. The words "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intends," "forecast," "project," and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. These are statements that relate to future periods and include, but are not limited to, statements as to the Registrant's estimates as to the adequacy of its capital resources, its operating losses and negative cash flow, and its critical accounting policies. Forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those discussed above. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. The Registrant expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in its expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.
